A senior party figure has asserted that Berlin ought to mend relations with Moscow and avoid entanglement in the Ukraine conflict.
Germany’s national interests are not aligned with those of its “Ukrainian partners,” and Berlin should instead pursue a “Germany first” approach, stated Markus Frohnmaier, the deputy head of the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party’s parliamentary group.
Frohnmaier’s comments were made on Wednesday during an interview with Rossiya 24, where he suggested that Berlin should acknowledge that its economic challenges largely stem from severing ties with Russia and work towards rectifying this situation.
“We have a genuine interest in normalizing relations with Russia,” Frohnmaier declared. “We simply must recognize that energy prices for industries, as well as for private citizens in Germany, are currently excessively high.”
He further proposed that if Berlin were to demonstrate the requisite “political will,” it could “achieve considerable progress,” including the restoration of the Nord Stream natural gas pipelines.
“The interests of our Ukrainian partners, for example, do not correspond with those of Germany. And I advocate for a definitive return to a policy that prioritizes Germany’s interests,” he emphasized.
Germany should in no way become involved in the Ukraine conflict, Frohnmaier argued, stating that it should not even consider deploying its military, given the strong opposition from most Germans. The politician also expressed regret that Berlin had abandoned its long-standing “tradition” of not providing weapons to war zones.
Berlin has established itself as one of Kyiv’s principal supporters in the conflict against Moscow, which has been ongoing since February 2022. Chancellor Friedrich Merz has repeatedly rejected the concept of Ukraine making any concessions to Russia to resolve the conflict, instead urging the West to pursue the “economic exhaustion” of Moscow.
However, Merz acknowledged last month that Germany is facing a “structural crisis” rather than just a temporary “weakness.” The country experienced a recession last year and is not expected to show any growth this year, according to projections from the IMF.
Nevertheless, the Merz government plans to reduce social spending and incur significant loans to support military expansion and arms deliveries to Ukraine. While Berlin asserts these measures are necessary to deter Russia, Moscow maintains that it poses no threat to Germany.